Carton feeding and squaring-up device



May 22, 1956 D. c. ANDERSON 2,746,363

CARTON FEEDING AND SQUARING-UP DEVICE Filed Jan. 25, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet l IN VEN TOR. Jon 440 C fl/vaseso/v,

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May 22, 1956 D. c. ANDERSON 2,745,363

CARTON FEEDING AND SQUARING-UP DEVICE Filed Jan. 25, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR.

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May 22, 1956 Filed Jan. 25, 1955 D. C. ANDERSON CARTON FEEDING AND SQUARING- 2,746,363 UP DEV ICE 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 ATTORNEYS.

3 or guides 7 and one or more front guides 8. A forward pressure is exerted upon the stack, as may be accomplished in various ways. If the machine is arranged vertically, the forward pressure may be the effect of trailing side of the collapsed carton which is about to be fed. The forwardpressure on the stack causes a slight opening up of the tubular carton body.

In the embodiment of Figs. 1 to 5, a pair of shafts 11 and 12 are so journaled as to lie one above and one below the cartons in the path. These shafts are driven by suitable means in timed relationship. Each shaft bears also a helical member 13 or 14 mounted by means of suitable radial studs on the shaft so as to rotate with it. At the feeding end these helical members are quite thin, preferably having the blade-like configuration most clearly illustrated at 15 in Fig. 4. Toward the opposite ends of the shafts 11 and 12, the helical members 13 and 14 not only change progressively in pitch, but also progressively in width, so that at the point where the cartons are delivered to the abutment conveyor, the helical members have attained a width substantially equal to the dis- ;tance between the wide body walls 1 in the squared-up carton structure.

The helical members 13 and 14 are of substantially constant circumference throughout their length; and the shafts 11 and 12 are so spaced from each other that the distance between the helical members at their nearest points will be somewhat less than the lengths of the body walls of the cartons. It will be within the skill of the machine designer to provide for adjustment of the positions of the shafts 11 and 12 to accommodate cartons of different lengths, as well as for the substitution of other helical members for handling cartons of different body sizes.

Fig. 4 shows how the thin end of 'a helical member 13, turning clockwise in the direction of the arrow will enter between the flaps of a carton at the plucking end of the stack. Fig. 5 is illustrative of the fact that as the rotation of the helix continues, it will engage between the body walls of the carton, as at13a. Due to the pitch of the helical member, the carton so engaged is moved 'away from the stack and pulled out from between fingers '9 and 10, giving a positive feeding action produced by means engaging inner rather than outer surfaces of the carton.

It will be understood that the shafts 11 and 12 rotate oppositely to each other but at the same speed, with the helices properly oriented thereon. As a consequence, when a carton has been removed from the stack,it will 'be moved along a path of travel parallel to the shafts. By reason of the increase in pitch of the helical members in the direction of this movement, the individual cartons will be tilted more and more in the direction of travel, as will be apparent in Figs. 1 and 2. Moreover, as the cartons move in the path, they will be progressively opened and squared-up because of the increasing width of the helical members engaging between the body walls of the cartons. Depending upon the direction of rotation of the shafts, there will be a net resultant of force on the cartons transverse the shafts, and for this reason the guide elements 7 are continued along the path of travel, being slanted toward the plane of the shafts to compensate for the lessening of the efiective width of the carton bodies as they are both tilted and squared-up. This is clearly shown in Fig. 1.

The receiving conveyor is shown as comprising chains a l 16 traveling about sprockets, one of which is partially illustrated in Fig. 1 at 17. The chains bear abutments or blocks 18, spaced at intervals corresponding to the effective Width of the squared-up carton bodies. When a carton body is delivered and released by the helical members 13 and 14, it will be in substantially fully squared-up condition and in such position as to pass behind a guide member 19 and come into place between a pair of adjacent abutment members or blocks 18, as most clearly apparent in Fig. 1. Since the chains 16 are at this point moving about the circumference of sprockets, the adjacent abutments will not be parallel but will be angularly related as shown. The carton bodies will be substantially squared-up as delivered to the conveyor, sufficiently so that they will come easily between the abutments in the positions shown. Afterwards, in the straight away flight of the conveyor, the abutments will come into parallelism, not only completing the accurate squaring-up of the carton bodies, but also engaging them in such fashion as to carry them through other operations performed by the filling machine.

Modifications may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit of it. By way of example, a modification is illustrated in Fig. 6 wherein like parts have been given like index numerals. In this embodiment the shafts 11 and 12 bear helical members 20 and 21 made of wire or rod-like material. The cartons are again held in a stack 5 under the same conditions and by the same mechanism that has been described above. The forward narrow end 22 of the lower helix 21 enters the carton about to be removed from the stack as hereinabove described, and moves its end of the carton away from the stack as illustrated in dotted lines at 23. Farther along in the direction of the length of the helical member 21, it becomes double, i. e. a second rod-like helix 21a begins and roughly parallels the helix 21. But as the convolutions of the helical members progress, the member 21a increases its distance from the member 21 until, at the far end of the helical member, the rods are spaced from each other substantially the distance between the wide walls of the erected carton. In other words, the second rodlike helix 21a gradually diverges from helix 21 so that the two together form the two edges of an imaginary surface equivalent to the ribbon 13 in Fig. 1. This is illustrated at points 24 and 25 in Fig. 6.

The upper helix 20 may, if desired, be the same as (a mirror image of) the lower helix 21 and 21a, in which event the operation of the helices will be the same as that hereinabove described in connection with Figs. 1 to 5 inclusive. However, in Fig. 6 there is illustrated a modification in which the upper helix 20 is a single rod helix lacking a nose portion similar to 22 for entering the top part of the carton body. It is the lower helix 21, therefore, which removes the carton from the stack; and it does so in a tilted position, as shown in dotted lines at 23. In this embodiment, on the shaft 12 a second helix 26 is mounted. This helix is of larger diameter than the helix 21. It engages behind the carton removed from the stack and straightens it up into substantially vertical position, as shown at 27. In this position the carton comes against the helix 20.

The first convolutions of the helix 20 in Fig. 6 have a high pitch, and as a result of the operation of the apparatus, the remaining convolutions come behind or on the trailing side of the carton, as at 27a, acting thereafter to maintain the carton in an upright position against the guide elements 7, 7, although the upper helix in this particular embodiment does not enter the carton. The helical members herein described need not be of constant diameter throughout their length. They may, for ex- :ample, progressively decrease inv diameter from the plucking end to the carton feeding end, i. e. as though the helices were formed on the surface of a frustum of ,a cone instead of on the surface of a cylinder. It will be understood thatas the helices-widen, a smaller efliective diameter permits them to entermore deeplybetween the opposite walls of the carton and therefore to exert shaft, a helical element mounted on said shaft to be rotated} thereby; one end of said helical element being adapted to enter the collapsed body of a; carton; between opposed walls thereof-and by engagement with said carton to move it along a path, and means along said' path; to maintain contact between said carton and said helical element while it-isbeingso moved; the convolutions" of said helical element; extending away from said mentioned end having a progressive increase in width in a direction substantially axially of said helical element, whereby the'said' convolutions act to exert internal expanding pressure on opposed walls of the carton tosquare it up while moving it in said path.

2. The structure claimed in claim 1, wherein one of the means for maintaining contact of said carton with said helical element; is a second: helical element mounted ona driven shaft. I

'3. The structure claimed in claim '1', wherein one of the means for maintaining contact of said carton with said helical element is a second helical element mounted on a driven shaft, said last mentioned helical element being of opposite hand to said first mentioned helical helical elements enter the body of said carton between opposed walls thereof, and in which both helical elements increase in width in successive convolutions.

' 6. In a device for squaring-up collapsed cartons, a shaft, a helical element mounted on said shaft to be rotated thereby, one end of said helical element being adapted to enter'the collapsed body of a carton between opposed walls thereof and by engagement with said carton to move it along a path, and means along said path to maintain contact between said carton and said helical element while it is being so moved, the convolutions of said helical element extending away from said mentioned end having a progressive increase in width in a direction substantially axially of said helical element, whereby the said convolutions act to exert internal expanding pressure on opposed walls of the carton to square it up while moving it in said path, said helical element also increasing in the pitch of its convolutions extending away from said mentioned end, whereby the carton is progressively turned axially while moving in said path.

7. In a device for squaring-up collapsed cartons, a shaft, a helical element mounted on said shaft to be rotated thereby, one end of said helical element being adapted to enter the collapsed body of a carton between opposed walls thereof and by engagement with said carton to move it along a path, and means along said path to maintain contact between said carton and said helical element while it is being so moved, the convolutions of said helical element extending away from said mentioned end having a progressive increase in width in a direction substantially axially of said helical element, whereby the said convolutions act to exert internal expanding pressure on opposed walls of the carton to square it up while moving it in said path, in combinar 6 tion with means'tbr presenting a carton in coliapsed condition to the'mentioned-endof said helical element and means for receiving andholding said carton in squared-up condition at the opposite end of said heiica! element when the carton is released thereby: 8'. In a device for squaring-up collapsed carton-8,. a shaft, a h'elical element-'mounted on said'shaftato be rotated thereby, one end of said helical element being adapted to. enter'the collapsed body of a carton between opposed walls thereof and by engagement with said carton to move it along a path, and meansalong said path to maintain contact between said" carton and said helical element while it isbeing so moved; the convoltr tions of said helical clement extending away from said mentioned end having a progressiveincrease in width in a direction substantiallyaxially of said helical. element; whereby the said convolutions act; to exert internal 'ex pan'ding pressure on opposed wall's ofthe, carton to square it up'while moving it in said path, in combination with means for-presenting a carton in collapsed condition to the mentioned encl of said' helicalflelement and means i for receiving and? holding said carton in squared-up con dition' at the opposite end of"said-" helical" element when the carton'is released" thereby, said last mentioned means being a conveyor having spaced abutment's' thereon between which said cartonis received in squared up condi'ti'on: k V

9. The structure clai'rned inclaim 8, whereirr'the-pitch of the convolutions of said helical element extending away from said first mentioned end increases progressively so that said carton is turned in the axial direction as it is moved in said path, and wherein the said receiving conveyor moves in its receiving portion at an angle to said path appropriate for the reception of the carton in its turned position.

10. A carton opening and feeding mechanism comprising a helical ribbon mounted for rotation on a horizontal axis below the lower end of the carton feed position, said ribbon beginning with a knife-like extension at the plucking end, said knife-like extension being adapted to be pushed into the bulge of the lead carton at the downward end thereof said bulge resulting from the carton being held by a stop affecting its rearward wall, the ribbon helix having a low pitchand narrow ribbon width immediately adjacent to the knife blade and thereby being adapted to follow said knife blade into the carton, said ribbon helix as it extends away from the plucking end becoming increasingly greater in pitch and ribbon width until such width approaches the thickness of an opened carton and means for plucking the lead carton from the stop at the top of said lead carton and helical means for guiding and propelling the top of the plucked cartons, the length and pitch of the helices being such as to deposit the cartons in opened condition, as a carton filling belt is reached, upon said belt at a suitable angle as said belt travels around a sprocket wheel, said filling belt, plucking means and helical ribbons being driven in timed relationship to insure the carton being placed upon the filling belt in linear relationship to carton spacing means thereon.

11. The carton opening and feeding mechanism of claim 10, in which the means for plucking the lead cartons from the stop at the top of said lead carton and the helical means for guiding and propelling the top of the plucked cartons are combined in a helical ribbon that is a mirror image of the bottom helix.

.12. The carton opening and feeding mechanism of claim 10, in which the means for plucking the top of the lead carton is a short helix of larger diameter aflixed to the lower ribbon-like helix and the means for guiding and propelling the tops of the cartons is a simple helix of varying pitch.

13. A carton-opening and feeding mechanism comprising a pair of helical ribbons one mounted for rotation on a horizontal axis below the lower end of the cartons,

7 and one mounted for rotation on a horizontal axis above the upper end of the cartons, said ribbons beginning with knife-like extensions, j at; theplucking end, said knife-like extensions being adapted to be pushedinto the bulge of the lead cartons at the upper and downward ends thereof, the ribbon helices having a low pitch and narrow ribbon Width immediately adjacent to the knife blades and thereby being adapted to follow such knife blades into the carton, said ribbon helices as they extend away from the plucking end becoming increasingly greater in pitch and in ribbon width until such width approaches the thickness of an opened carton, whereby the cartons are in open condition as a carton filling belt is reached, the length and pitch of the helices being such as to deposit the cartons on said carton filling belt at a suitable angle as said belt travels around a sprocket wheel, said filling belt and helical ribbons being driven in timed relationship to insure the cartons being placed upon the filling belt in linear relationship to carton spacing means thereon.

' 14. In combination, a means for presenting an assemblage of cartons having collapsed tubular bodies and end closure flaps, retaining means at'the end of said first mentioned means engaging a trailing flap of the leading carton, and a continuously moving helical element having a trailing end shaped and positioned to enter between the flaps of said leading carton and opposed body walls thereof and pluck said carton away from said first mentioned means, and means for maintaining contact of said cartonwith said helical element, the convolutions of said helical element increasingprogressively in width as they extend away from said mentioned end, whereby during the continued engagement of said carton with said helical element and its movement in said path thereby, the collapsed body of said carton is squared up.

15 In combination, a means for presenting an assemblage of cartons having collapsed tubular bodies and end closure flaps, retaining means at the endof said first mentioned means engaging a trailing flap of the leading carton, and a continuously moving helical element having a trailing end shaped and-positioned to enter between the flaps of said leading carton and opposed body walls thereof and pluck said carton away from said first mentioned means, and means for maintaining contact of said carton with said helical element, the convolutions of said helical element increasing progressively in width as they extend away from said mentioned end, whereby during the continued engagement of said carton with said helical element and its movement in said path thereby, the collapsed body of said carton is squared up, and means for receiving and retaining said carton in squared up condition at the end of said path.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,665,044 Monroe et a1. Jan. 4, 1954 

